Sunday, December 30, 2012

Here's an interview posted today by The Hub of Distance Running. Click HERE to go the site and explore other items.

1. How did you get started in running?
I got started in running when I was about 10 when I made the state team in cross country; before then I only dabbled in the sport. When I started making some more serious teams my training began to get serious.

2. What do you tell people that don't get our sport of distance running?
I tell them I run 15 miles on a Sunday, its generally good for an interesting reaction.

4. How do you manage being a college student with being a college distance runner?
The first semester was tough for me, it has taken me the first semester to get used to running and college together. Villanova is a fairly tough school, but not only do I like to succeed in running I also like to succeed academically.

5. Who are your favorite professional and/or college distance runner(s) past and/or present & why?
I really look up to my current coach Marcus O'Sullivan. If I can achieve half of what he has I'll consider it a successful career. I also like any Aussie athlete out there, I realise how hard it can be running out of Australia compared to America.

6. Best or Worst thing about being a distance running?
The best part of being a distance running is that feeling after finishing off a tough session. Everybody who has ever been there knows what I'm talking about. There really is nothing else like it. The worst part of being a distance runner is probably behaving at college, but ultimately its worth it. I get far greater satisfaction from running than I ever would from some party.

7. Your Favorite Moment of your distance running career?
The best moment of my distance running career has been the last year as a whole. It had its ups and downs, but I really put in a huge effort and it paid off.

8. Goals for 2013?
In 2013 I just want to do the best I can while wearing a Villanova jersey. Of course I'd love to make a senior Australian team, but I feel like the team we have at Villanova can do some very special things and that has my full attention.

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

The years, along with the fads and fashions, race by
Written by Vicki Huber Rudawsky On Running
December 25, 2012

Every year, as the end of December approaches, we reflect on how quickly the year has gone by – almost in the blink of an eye.

As we meet to run every other day, sticking to the same routine we have been following for almost seven years, it is scary to imagine how much the world, our lives, our children and even ourselves have changed.

It is undeniable that the world is progressing at warp speed, and even the sport
of running has changed dramatically in the past 30 years.

Thirty years ago, a gallon of milk cost $1.71 and gas was $1.27 a gallon. Jog bras had just been invented. Thirty years ago, the cost of a home was around $25,000, and when you saw a person go running by your house, you might have though he was crazy; crazier if it was a woman.

When I started running in 1981, I didn’t know there were special shoes for it. No one knew the correct pronunciation for the new shoes named Nike. We just knew that they were revolutionary and cost more than the sneakers at Fayva. We didn’t have bras made especially for running, nor did we have special clothes. Winter workouts were run in heavy Champion sweats, and you prayed it didn’t rain or you would be carrying 10 extra pounds of wet cotton.

When running tights appeared, many were scared to wear them. They certainly revealed more than sweatpants, so we wore them with shorts over top to start. I’ll never forget the many strange looks we got as we ran along the main roads, and some people even felt compelled to let us know exactly how inappropriately we were dressed. Now the running clothes that girls wear could not be skimpier.

I remember running a loop and then going back over it in the car to see approximately how far it was. Today, you can go on the computer and map out your run, knowing exactly how far it is before you even step out the door. If someone had told us back then that most runners would be wearing a watch that not only told us how long we had been running but how far and how fast, we would have laughed them off the road.

Every once in a while, I would grab my CD player and go for a short run. My stride would end up skipping the CD or I would run out of battery power halfway through my run. Today, kids don’t even know what a CD player is, let alone could they imagine running with one. Now iPod shuffles are so small you easily can lose it, yet they can carry more than 100 songs. Amazing.

In the past 30 years, we have progressed from cheap running shoes to shoes that stop us from pronating to ones that hold a computer chip in them that keeps track of our mileage to shoes that are hardly shoes at all. Who would have ever thought that the past few years would have been the years of barefoot running?

Running clothes today are amazing, made from fabrics that are warm, wicking and so comfortable you can sleep in them. And every top fashion store now carries a workout line. Wearing tights, which was almost taboo 30 years ago, now is the style.

When I was in high school, we were fortunate to have a physical therapist in our running group. Once in a while, one of us would have a small injury, and he would help us out. Today, every high school has a trainer on staff, and kids receive immediate medical care, whether at practice or during a competition. This is one of the best things to happen to high school sports
in recent years.

My good friend, and hairdresser, is only four years older than me but she had to run with the boys when she was in high school. Recently, my high school coach from Concord, Don Wood, was inducted into the Delaware Track and Field Hall of Fame. At the dinner, I was enlightened to the fact that Don was instrumental in not only starting girls track at Concord but also in creating the opportunity for the girls in Delaware to have a state track and field meet. It is mind-boggling to me that just a few years before I started running, most girls did not have the same opportunities.

There is evolution in every aspect of life, and running certainly has had tremendous changes in a relatively short amount of time. However, the best thing about running is that regardless of how technical and complicated you can make it, you don’t have to. You can always just throw on an old pair of shorts and a T-shirt, grab your running shoes and head out the door. Simplicity at its best.

Vicki Huber represented the USA in the 1988 (6th place, 3000 meters) and 1996 Olympic Games (1500 meters). While at Villanova, she won 8 individual NCAA titles (3 indoor and 3 outdoor titles at 3000 meters in 1987, 1988, and 1989, the 1988 indoor mile, and the 1989 cross country individual title). Huber was USATF national champion in the 1500 meters in 1988, set a USA 5K record, and was 4th at the 1992 World Cross Country championships.

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Recent Villanova signee Julie Williams (Tatnall, DE) came third in the 2-mile run at yesterday's Bishop Loughlin Games at the Armory in New York city. Her time of 11:05.57 was a new PR. It is currently the #4 prep time in the USA this indoor season.

Friday, December 14, 2012

Just a few days after finishing 29th at Nike Cross Nationals in San Diego, Katie Brislin of Fayetteville-Manlius (Manlius, NY) committed to Villanova on December 11th. Brislin earned a trip to the national championship by virtue of her 8th place finish at the NXN New York Regional, where she ran the 5K course in 18:48.40.

Brislin comes from a national track and cross country powerhouse. Two weeks ago the Fayetteville-Manlius girls won their 7th consecutive cross country national championship. Villanova recently lost out on Brislin's teammate Jillian Fanning, who signed with Providence on December 4th. Brislin will join former teammate Courtney Chapman, currently a sophomore on Gina Procaccio's Villanova women's squad.

Monday, December 10, 2012

Hugo Beamish, former Big East 5000 meter champion for Villanova, came 8th overall on Saturday in Melbourne at the Zatopek 10,000 meters. The race was won by 2012's world leader at 10,000 meters Emmanuel Bett, who came home a full 36 seconds ahead of Australian Olympian and NR holder Ben St Lawrence. Recent Villanova graduate Hugo Beamish led the Kiwi contingent in the race in a new PR, coming 8th in a crisp 28:53.19 (see race highlights above). Beamish, 23, had recently returned home from Philadelphia to get in some good summer training down under. He had experienced some excellent results before leaving, finishing a very close 2nd at the Camden Cooper-Norcross Bridge Challenge (10K) in 30:00 (November 4), coming 4th at the Rothman 8K run in Philadelphia, in a very fast 23:02 (November 17), and winning the Four Seasons Parkway Run (5K) in Philadelphia in 14:41 (October 30).

Saturday, December 8, 2012

Former Villanova cross country All-American Amanda Marino came 26th this afternoon in Lexington, KY at the USATF National Club Cross Country Championship. Marino was a 3-time cross country All-American (35th, 6th, 10th) and part of two consecutive National Championship cross country teams at Villanova from 2007-2011. Marino was also a 3-time All-American in the 5000 meters on the track. 2012 has been a solid year for Marino. In January she made her marathon debut at the US Olympic Marathon Trials, where she finished 51st in 2:41.22. In June, she came 18th at the NYRR Mini-10K, and finished 18th again at the USA 20K Championship in September. All this on the heels of her November 2011 3rd place finish at the Philadelphia half-marathon, where she ran 1:13.47.

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Villanova track and field giants Jen Rhines and Jim Tuppeny are among nine Villanova athletic greats inducted into the 2012 class of the Varsity Club. Here is the press release from Villanova:

Varsity Club Hall of Fame Announces 2012 Induction Class
Nine new members to be inducted to Hall of Fame

Dec. 5, 2012

VILLANOVA, Pa. - The induction class for 2012 to the Varsity Club Hall of Fame was announced today and nine new members, each from a different sport, will be formally inducted at the 37th Annual Hall of Fame Awards Dinner on Friday, February 8 at the Connelly Center. In addition to the nine new Hall of Fame members the Jake Nevin Award will be presented to former baseball coach and athletics administrator Larry Shane.

Ticket information for the Hall of Fame Awards dinner on February 8 will be announced at a later date and will be available for purchase at Villanova.com. The honorees will also be recognized at halftime of the basketball game on Saturday, February 9 against USF at the Pavilion.

Below are capsules of each of the 10 honorees.

DAVID HERR (BASEBALL, 1992-95)

Herr is one of the top pitchers in the history of the Villanova baseball program and his academic accomplishments are equally impressive to those that came on the diamond. Herr ranks in the top 10 in school history in four career categories, including being tied for third with 20 victories. He also is tied for fourth in the Wildcats record book in complete game (12), is sixth in strikeouts (209) and ranks 10th in innings pitched (241). Herr is a two-time All-BIG EAST selection who earned first team honors in 1993 and garnered second team recognition in 1995. His career stats include 50 appearances with a 20-11 record, five saves and three shutouts. He was chosen as the 1995 Villanova Male Senior Student-Athlete of the Year and earned CoSIDA Academic All-America honors in 1993. Herr was also a two-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star and received an NCAA Post-Graduate Scholarship.

JASON LAWSON (MEN'S BASKETBALL, 1993-97)

Lawson is one of the top defensive players in school history and as a senior in 1997 was named the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year. He is the all-time Villanova leader in blocked shots with 375 and during his career was a three-time second team All-BIG EAST selection. Lawson tallied 21 career double-doubles and averaged 11.9 points per game to finish his collegiate career with 1,565 points, the 22nd-most in school history. Lawson was a member of the 1995 BIG EAST All-Tournament Team when the Wildcats won the conference championship and was also the 1994 Big Five Rookie of the Year.

Denise Dillon (WOMEN'S BASKETBALL, 1992-96)

Dillon earned BIG EAST postseason honors all four years of her Villanova career. She was named to the All-Rookie team in 1993, was selected to the All-BIG EAST second team in 1994 and 1996 and received first team accolades in 1995. Dillon was also a three-time first team All-Big Five selection and finished her career with totals of 1,355 points, 677 rebounds, 228 assists and 193 steals. She ranks eighth in school history in both points and rebounds and is one of only four players in school history with at least 1,300 points, 600 rebounds and 200 assists. Villanova won 68 games with a .643 winning percentage during her career, including a 21-7 mark in 1995-96.

TYRONE FRAZIER (FOOTBALL, 1992-95)

Frazier was a consensus first team All-American in 1994 and that season was also named first team All-ECAC and first team All-Yankee Conference. For the season Frazier led the Wildcats with 150 tackles and had six tackles for loss, including four quarterback sacks. Despite suffering a season-ending injury in the second game of his senior year Frazier posted career totals of 218 tackles (125 solo, 93 assisted) and had 10 tackles for loss, including four sacks. He was a freshman on the 1992 Villanova squad which went 9-3 and reached the playoffs.

KEN DELGATTO (MEN'S LACROSSE, 1981-84)

Delgatto was a top offensive player for Villanova during the program's early years as a varsity sport. His career stats include 62 goals and 52 assists for 114 points, all of which rank among the best in school history to this day. Delgatto ranks 10th in school history for career points, 11th in career assists and is 15th in goals. He was named the 1981 Rookie of the Year and that season had 16 goals and 12 assists while leading the team in both assists and ground balls. He led the team in points, assists and ground balls as a sophomore before finishing his career leading the Wildcats in scoring and goals as a senior. Delgatto was also second on the squad in assists and ground balls while helping lead Villanova to an 11-1 record in 1984.

AMY MEISINGER (SOFTBALL, 1990-93)

Meisinger is among the career Villanova leaders in victories, complete game and shutouts. She is fourth in school history with 45 complete games and sixth with 42 victories, while also tying for fourth place in career shutouts. Meisinger earned first team All-BIG EAST accolades in 1992 and was a third team CoSIDA Academic All-American that same year.

TOM TRACEY (MEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING, 1993-97)

Tracey enjoyed a standout career for the Wildcats and holds seven school records, including two individual records and five relays. He is the school record holder in both the 100 and 200 yard backstroke with top times of 47.44 and 1:44.26 in those events, respectively. Tracey is also part of school records in the 200 and 400 medley relays, as well as the 200, 400 and 800 freestyle relays. He was a five-time All-American during his collegiate career, including three times in the 100 backstroke (1995, 1996, 1997) and once each in the 200 backstroke (1997) and the 400 medley relay (1996).

JIM TUPPENY (TRACK & FIELD, ASSISTANT COACH 1953-66 and 1994-00)

Tuppeny had two stints as an assistant coach at Villanova and is also well-known in the Philadelphia area for serving as the director of the Penn Relays for 17 years. He first came to the Wildcats in 1953 and was an assistant coach until 1966, during which time he helped the Villanova program produce 15 outdoor national champions. Tuppeny also coached Olympians Ron Delany, Charlie Jenkins, Larry James and Don Bragg in his first Villanova coaching stint. After serving as head coach at Penn (1966-79) and the director of the Penn Relays (1970-87), Tuppeny returned to the Wildcats in 1994 and was still coaching at the time of his death. In 1998-99 he celebrated his 50th year of coaching.

JEN RHINES (WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD, 1992-96)

Rhines was a star distance runner for Villanova during one of the most successful periods in the history of the program. She helped lead the Wildcats cross country team to national titles in 1992, 1993 and 1994 while also finishing as the individual national champion in 1994 and the runner-up the year before. She was a two-time NCAA Cross Country All-American and a six-time individual national champion counting cross country, indoor track and outdoor track. She won the outdoor national title in the 5000 meters three straight years from 1994-96 and was a two-time indoor national champion in 1995, when she won the 5000 meters and anchored the Wildcats champion distance medley relay. Rhines was also an eight-time BIG EAST individual champion, including five times indoors and three times outdoors. She was inducted onto the Wall of Fame in Villanova Stadium in 1999 and has competed in three Olympics (2000, 2004, 2008).

LARRY SHANE (JAKE NEVIN AWARD, ADMINISTRATOR AND BASEBALL COACH)

Shane first came to Villanova in 1963 and he spent the next 35 years as a baseball coach and an athletics administrator. After serving as an assistant baseball coach from 1963-72 he was head coach from 1973-85. During his time as head coach he led the Wildcats to 153 wins, the fifth most in the nearly 150-year history of the program. Villanova made consecutive appearances in the ECAC South Division Playoffs in 1980 and 1981 and during those two seasons compiled a combined record of 41-19 (.683). Shane had five players chosen in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft while he was head coach and five of his players have been inducted to the Varsity Club Hall of Fame. Following his head coaching career Shane was an athletics administrator in the Student Services office from 1985 until his retirement in 1998.

Sunday, December 2, 2012

Villanova track and field opened the 2012-2013 indoor season in style yesterday at the Jack Pyrah Invitational at Haverford College, winning 10 individual and 2 relay events. Especially noteworthy were the debuts of three highly recruited freshman: ten-time Pennsylvania state champion and two-time All American miler Angel Piccirillo, who sat out the cross country season with a nagging -- if minor -- injury, donned the vest for the first time as a Villanova Wildcat. Likewise, middle distance ace Kelsey Margey, winner of the 2012 New Balance Outdoor Nationals in the mile and New York state champion over 800 meters, made her track debut for Villanova. Finally, on the men's side Josh Lampron, winner of the 2011 New Balance Outdoor Nationals mile title (and owner of a 4:02 mile PR), hit the track for the first time in a Villanova singlet. Both Piccirillo and Lampron had recently been named 2012 All-American prep milers by Track & Field News.

Women Set Three Meet Records
Perhaps the performance of the meet was Kelsey Margey's obliteration of the meet record at 800 meters. Margey's 2:10.99 win surpassed the 2003 meet record of 2:16.03 by Swarthmore's Elizabeth Gardner. Angel Piccirillo also set a new meet record, this time at 1000 meters. In her first-ever race for Villanova, Piccirillo won the event by almost three seconds in 2:51.21, besting Ariann Neutts' 2:52.34 record set in 2010. A third meet record for the women was set by Alex Wasik in the pole vault. Wasik surpassed 12 feet, winning with a 3.90 vault -- besting the 3.81 meter meet record from 2004. Other women event winners were Emerald Walden (60 meter hurdles), Varonica Johnson (both at 60 meters and 300 meters), and Samantha Francis (triple jump). Freshman Michaela Wilkins ran a strong second over 500 meters. Villanova also went 1-2 in the women's 4x400 meter relay.

Ellison, Solis, and Kido Take Wins.
The men's team took individual wins at 1000 meters (Sam Ellison), the mile (Dusty Solis), and the pole vault (Charles Kido). Ellison ran 2:30.61 for the win at 1000 meters. Frosh Josh Lampron, running unattached, was 5th in the race, running 2:32.18. Dusty Solis set a new PR in the mile with his 4:16.04 victory. The third event winner for the Villanova men went to pole vaulter Charles Kido, who cleared 4.35 meters. Freshman Donald Urschel came second in both the 60 meter and 300 meter dashes. The men also took a win in the 4x400 meters.